Thin-place preventer for looms.



J. NORTHROP.

THIN PLACE PREVENTER FOR LOOMS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 9, 1909.

9?3, 129 Patented Oct. 18, 1910.

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J. NORTHROP. THIE PLACE PBBVENTER FOB. LOOMS.

APPLIOATIOH FILED SEPT. 9, 1909.

9%,1298 Patented Oct. 18,1910.

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STAES ATENT ()FFlCE.

iTOI N AS NORTHBOP, OF HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO WILLIAM F. DRAPER,

0F HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS; CLARE H. DRAPER AND OLIVER H. LANE EXECU- TORS OF SAID WILLIAM F. DRAPER, DECEASED.

THIN-PLACE PBEVENTER FOR LOOMS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 18, 1910.

Application filed September 9, 1909. Serial No. 516,849.

drawings representing like parts.

The invention to be hereinafter described relates to looms, and more particularly to means for preventing the formation of thin places in the cloth being woven.

As well known by those skilled in the art, a weft fork is ordinarily employed to detect the presence or absence of weft or filling in the shed, and to cause the loom to stop or a train of mechanism to be put in operative condition to effect a new supply of weft or filling when an absence of weft or filling is detected. In either case it is the failure of the Weft fork to be tilted that determines whether either of the aboveresults shall be reached. It happens at times that lint ac the shed by the shuttle, the weft fork' may continue to be tilted as the lay beats up and the loom continuevto operateeven though the weft or filling hasbecome broken or exhausted and remains so. The result is 'the production of thin places in the cloth being woven, as will be clearlyapparent to those familiar with the art.

The aims and purposes of the present invention are to overcome thisdefective action and provide means whereby, should the weft fork be tilted for reasons other than the presence of weft or filling in the shed, the loom will be stopped, all as .will herein more fully appear in connection with the following description 'of one form of means for carrying the invention-into practical effect, it being understood that the invention may be embodied in various forms of means other than that shown and described, as it is not restricted thereto.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a plan View representing suflicient of one side of aloom containing the present invention; Fig. 2 is a section on the line a-b, Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow, and with some of the parts omitted in the interest of clearness, the weft or filling being shown as being present in front of the weft fork; Fig. 3 v

is a view similar to that of Fig. 1, with the parts in another position, and some features being omitted to afford better illustration of others; and Fig. 4 is a sectional View showing the weft fork as improperly tilted by a bunch of lint even though the weft or filling is not present in the shed.

The loom frame may be of any usualor desired character and is provided with the breast beam 1 from which projects a bracket 2 havingthe slot 3 and usual holding notch for a shipper 4 which controls the operative and inoperative condition of the loom, as well understood by those skilled in the art.

,Secured to the breast beam by suitable means,- as by slot 5 and bolt 6, is a bracket 7 one portion 8 of which may conveniently provide a support for the pivot 9 of the knock-off lever 10, the end 11 of which is disposed in such position that movement of the lever 10 clockwise, viewing Fig. 1, will cause the shipper to be detached from its holding notch and the loom to stop, as usual. The other portion 12 of the knock-off lever is extended into such position that upon improper tilting of the weft fork for any reason, it will be moved to free the shipper from the holding notch and effect loom stoppage, as will more fully appear.

Extending from the bracket 7 are the fixed supporting arms 13, 13 carrying the weft fork 14 at their outer ends, said weft fork being pivoted thereto at 15 and having the downwardly extending tines, which, unless prevented, are adapted to pass between the upright bars 16 of the usual grid 17 secured to the lay beam 18, as the lay heats up. Y

The weft fork is provided with a cam or or arched portion 19 adjacent one of the fixed, supporting arms 13 and preferably disposed between said arms for a purpose that will presently appear, and has the upwardly extending finger 20. In the present illustration the weft fork is conveniently formed of sheet metal and hasv the side ears 21 by which it is pivotally supported, although, as will be obvious, this is not essential and various changes may be made in these respects within the true scope of the present invention.

The invention is herein shown and described as associated with a filling replenishing loom, but it is to be understood that this 15 for exploitation purposes only, the

invention being ada ted for association with any character 0 loom. I

Mounted in brackets or bearings 22, Fig. 1, is the usual transverse shaft 23 of a filling replenishing loom, said shaft havin an arm 24 rising therefrom to which is pivoted at the actuator 26, the end of which has a shoulder 28 adapted'to coact with the finger 20 of the weft fork. The actuator 26, as described in application filed August 30, 1909, Ser. No. 515,152, may. have a curved or recessed portion 29, and a portion 30 adapted to coact with the slotted head 31 of a weft hammer 32, the construction being such being moved by the latter as it makes its.

forward stroke; but should the filling improperly fail to be laid in the shed in front of the weft fork, and the weft fork be not tilted as the lay beats up, the. shoulder 28 of the actuator will meet and be supported by the finger 20 of the weft fork, so that the weft hammer will, on its forward movement, move the actuator and set in action a train of mechanism which may either cause filling replenishment, as in the construction illustrated, or loom stoppage.

In the embodiment of the invention shown, the weft fork mechanism is at the side of the loom opposite or remote from the filling replenishing mechanism, and, as usual, the weft hammer makes one excursionv and return to each two beat up movements of the lay, the consequence is that weft or filling detection, as above indicated,

will occur when the shuttle is in the box at the side of the loom remote from the filling] replenishing mechanism, and the .weft hammer will move forward the actuator when the shuttle is on the filling replenishing side, although this relation and action of parts are not essential to the truescope of the invention, as will be readily understood. It sometimes happens that a bunch of lint may accumulate in front of the grid 17, or

a tine of the weft fork may become bent, or'

other condition arise, which, notwithstanding the fact that weft or filling may not be laid in the shed, will cause the weft fork to and in the absence 0 be improperly tilted ,on the beat up movement of the lay. Under these conditions the loom will continue to run without filling and thin places be formed in the cloth, as will be readily understood. The present invention contemplates means for preventing the formation of such thin places, one form of which means will now be described,

it being understood that the invention is beneath the end 38 of the knock-oft lever without moving it. The tilting member or lever 36 has a'lug' or projection 39 at its end portion adjacent the weft fork, which, as the weft hammer moves back and forth .in usual manner, is adapted'to cooperate with the cam or arched portion 19 of the weft fork, the construction and relation of the parts being such ,that when the weft hammer is in its back position, as in Fig. 2, said lug or projection 39 will be in rear or back of the cam or arched portion 19, and when the weft hammer is in its front position the lug or projection 39 will be in front of or on the opposite side of said cam or arched portion, as indicated in Fig. 4.

From the construction described it will be clear to those'skilled in the art that so long as the loom is working under,11ormal conditions, that is without the accumulation of lint in front of the rid, as at 40, Fig. 4, other condition that would cause the weft fork to improperly tilt, the lug or projection 39 will travel back and forth over the cam or arched portion 19 of the weft fork and act to position it for its next indication of weft or filling absence or presence; and if, under these normal conditions, the filling fails, the weft fork will act, as usual, to cause filling replenishment filling on the detecting pick, the lug or projection 39, on the frontward movement of the weft hammer, would again ride over the cam or arched portion 19 of the weft fork, and on its return .or rearward movement would find the weft fork in tilted position, as .in Fig. 4, so that the projection or lug 39 would pass beneath the cam or arched portion 19 of the weft fork, thus failing to depress the end 37 of the member or lever 36, which, on the return frontward movement, would engage the end 38 of the knock-ofi' lever and cause the loom to stop in a manner well understood, whereupon the defect causing stoppage may be corrected.

If desired'the tilting member or lever 36 may have a lug 41 to normally support the fork end of the lever by engaging and slid ing on one of the fixed su porting arms 13, when the lug or projectioff 39 is not riding overthe cam or arched portion 19 of the weft fork, said end of the lever being preferably made heavier than the outer end 37.

Obviously various changes may be made in the form, character, and general relation of the parts, and means other than the means shown may be employed within the true scope'of the present invention, which is definitely pointed out by the claims.

hat is claimed is:

1. In .a loom, the combination of a lay, loom stopping means, a weft fork, means pontrolled by the weft fork to actuate the stopping means, and actuating devices for causing said controlled means to stop the loom when the weft fork istilted on the non-detecting beat of the lay with reference to said weft fork.

In a loom, thecombination of a lay, stopping means for the loom, a weft fork, means operatively related to the stopping means, and mechanism for moving said operatively related means to cause the loom to stop when the weft fork indicates presence of filling on the non-detecting beat of the lay with respect to said weft fork.

3. In a loom, the combination of a lay, stopping means for the loom, a weft fork, an arm operatively related to the stopping means and controlled as to its position by the weft fork, and means to cause said arm to actuate the stopping means when the weft fork controlled position of said arm improperly indicates presence of filling on the non-detecting beat of the lay.

4. In a loom, the combination'of a lay, loom stopping means, means to indicate the presence of filling, and means operative on improper indication by said indicating means to actuate the stopping means.

5. In a loom, the combination of .a lay, loom stopping means, means to indicate the presence of filling, and a stop-arm operative on improper indication by said indicating means during the non-detecting beat of the lay to actuate the stopping means.

6. In a loom, the combination of a lay, loom stopping means including a knock-off element, means to indicate the presence of filling, and means operative on improper indication by said indicating. means at the time of non-detecting lay movement to actuate the knock-off element.

7. In a loom, the combination of a lay,

loom stopping means, a wefthammer, means to indicate the presence of filling, and means actuated by the weft hammer to operate the stopping means when the indicating means improperly indicates the presence of filling on the non-detecting beat of the lay.

8. In a 100m, the combination of a lay,

loom stop ing means, a filling detector operative as t e lay heats up to etect the presence of filling, means operatively positioned to actuate the stopping means on improper indication of presence of filling by the indicatin means, and actuating mechanism for sai operatively positioned means.

9. In a loom, the combination of a lay, loom stoppin means, a weft fork,\a stop arm cooperating with said loom stopping means and adapted to be maintained in inoperative position under normal operative condition of the loom and to move into operative position when the weft fork indicates an abnormal condition on the nondetecting-beat of the lay, and means to cause the sto arm to actuate the stopping means when t e stop arm is in operative position.

10. In a loom, the combination bf a lay, means to indicate the presence or absence of filling, a transverse shaft, loom stopping means, and means to actuate the transverse shaft when the indicating means properly indicates the absence of filling and to actuate the stopping means and stop the loom when the indicating means indicates presence of filling on the non-detecting beat of the lay.

11. In a loom, the combination of alay, a weft fork to detect the presence or absence of filling, a transverse shaft, loom stopping means, and means to actuate the transverse shaft when the weft fork properly detects the absence of filling and to cause the loom to stop when the weft fork indicates the .presence of filling on the non-detecting movement of the lay.

12. In a loom, the combination of alay, a weft fork to detect the presence or absence of filling, and means acting positively to move the weft fork to detectmg position after it has been moved by the fillmg and to prevent vibration thereof.

13. In a loom, the combination of a lay, a weft fork to detect the presence or absence of filling in the shed, a weft hammer, and means moved by said hammer and acting positively to return the weft fork to detecting position after it has been moved by a filling and to prevent vibration thereof.

14. In a loom, the combination of a lay, a weft fork having a cam portion, a weft hammer, and a member movable to engage said cam portion and return the weft fork to detecting position after it has been moved by a filling.

15. In a loom, the combination of a. lay, a weft fork havin a cam portion, a weft hammer, a tilting member adapted to be tilted by 4 said cam portion when the weft fork is in normal position and fail to be tilted by said cam portion when the weft fork is improperly out of normal position on the non-detecting movement of the la and stoppingmeans controlled by said tiltnigmember.

16. In a loom, the combination of a lay, a weft fork, a weft hammer, a tilting member under control of the weftfork, and means to cause the tilting member to move independent of the weft fork to stop the loom when the weft fork improperly indicates the presence of filling on the non-detecting movement of the lay.

17. In a filling replenishing loom, the combination of the lay, a weft fork, stopping mechanism for the loom, filling replenishing actuating means and means for operating said actuating means when the weft fork properly indicates an absence of filling, and means for actuating the stopping mechanism when the weft fork indicates presence of filling on the non-detecting movement of the lay.

18. In a loom, the combination of a lay, a weft fork having a cam portion, a weft hammer, and a member movable to engage and ride over said cam portion to return the weft fork to detecting posit-ion after it has been moved by a filling and-twpass under 7 said cam portion when the weft fork is tilted on the non-detecting beatof the lay.

19. In a loom, the combination of a lay, a weft fork, loom stopping mechanism, means adapted to be tilted by the weft fork following the detecting beat up movement of the lay and failing to be tilted by the weft fork on the non-detecting beat up movement of the lay when the weft fork is tilted on such non-detecting lay movement, and actuating devices for said means to operate the stopping mechanism when the said means fails to be tilted.

20. In a loom, the combination of the lay,

a weft fork, fixed supports for pivotally sastaining the weft fork, and means to move and temporarily hold the weft fork in initial position to prevent vibration thereof after being tilted by the filling.

21. In a loom, the combination'of a lay and its shuttle boxes, :1 weft fork disposed at one side of the loom, stopping mechanism, and means controlled by the weft fork for actuating the stopping mechanism if the weft fork is tilted when the shuttle is in the box at that side of the loom 'more remote from the weft fork.

22. In a loom, the combination of a lay and its shuttle boxes, loom stopping mechanism, indicating means disposed at one side of the loom to indicate the presence of filling, and means rendered operative to actuate the stopping mechanism and stop the loom if the indicating means indicates presence of filling when the shuttle is in the box at the side of the loom remote from the indicating means.

23. In a loom, the combination of a lay, a filling detector to detect the presence of filling, loom stopping means,.means controlled by the filling detector to actuate the stopping means when thefilling detector is improperly operated, and actuating devices for said controlled means.

stopping means, and means for actuating the controlled means to stop the loom when the weft fork is improperly tilted by other than the filling as the lay heats up.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JONAS NORTHROP.

Witnesses:

SHELBY X. VINCENT, E. S. WOOD. 

